Chelsea are surely looking towards a huge revamp of the side, especially with Antonio Conte coming into the team. The London club have confirmed the former Juventus manager will take over after the end of the Euro 2016 competition and well, he seems to be bringing in a part from Italy.
While midfielders such as Radja Nainggolan and Miralem Pjanic are being scouted, Chelsea also have an issue with their defence. This season has been poor for the Blues and their defence has been one of the weak points having conceded 48 goals from 35 games so far.
This is a far cry from the side that stifled teams last season and won the league so comfortably. Chelsea on their part also have an issue with personnel, Gary Cahill and Kurt Zouma haven’t had the best of seasons and the player who did perform the best in central defence, John Terry might not be offered a new contract at the end of the season, again a major blow to a side that is known for their defence.
Conte though, seems to have lined up a new defender to join the club at the start of next season. Raiding Roma seems to be the plan for Chelsea and Kostas Manolas is the next Roma star looking to join the books of Chelsea.
The Roman warrior
The Greece international is just 24-years of age and has made 43 appearances for Roma this season, not a bad number for someone this young. Manolas joined the Rome side from Olympiakos in 2014 and if he is transferred to Chelsea, Roma would have to pay the Greek club a sizeable amount of the fee.
Manolas seems to be a defender made for the Premier League. He is quick with his feet and is fast enough to keep a track of the quickest players in the world. He is also extremely tough and physical to ensure that he does not get bullied easily off the ball.
The Greek defender is also known for his ability to start attacks from the back and he does have a decent range of passing. He is comfortable with the ball at his feet and doesn’t get too flustered while possessing the ball, certainly something the Chelsea defence can use.
The club would need someone who is a natural leader in the back, and if Terry is to leave the club, then unfortunately Manolas is not that kind of player. He would probably be paired with Gary Cahill, but even the English defender has not had the best season for Chelsea and Manolas could be playing with Kurt Zouma, giving Chelsea a young and brilliant centre-back pairing for the future.
Getting Manolas to the club would be a big coup for the side, but he hasn’t really done enough to justify the attention he is getting. Manolas is one for the future and Chelsea need someone like that at the moment, even if he cannot solve all their defensive problems next season.